Darkness and Light
by AquilaTempestas
Summary: He's tired of being alone, tired of being the target of abuse. He's close to ending it for good, but the arrival of a new kid changes his perspective on life. AU Highschool fic. Alex/Murphy, Alex/Elle friendship
1. Broken

**Disclaimer**

The rights to Silent Hill don't belong to me, unfortunately. That belongs to Konami.

**Title**

Darkness and Light

**Summary**

He's tired of being alone, tired of being the target of abuse. He's close to ending it for good, but the arrival of a new kid changes his perspective on life.

**.**

**Chapter One: Broken**

Sitting alone in the back corner of the classroom, he tried to tune out the comments students were making about him. Some students glanced over their shoulders and snickered at him, whilst others made snide remarks. It was the same routine everyday and Alex Shepherd often wondered how much more he could take.

No one had tried to make friendly conversation with him, no, he was just the pathetic kid with a broken family life. He did have one friend though, her name was Elle, but even she kept her distance from him while they were at school. Anyone caught hanging out with 'that Shepherd kid' would get bullied. It wasn't just the students that made his life hell, even the teachers did everything they could to make him feel miserable.

Sometimes his teachers would purposefully make him fail; they'd spend hours trying to find something wrong with his work and deduct the marks. Whether it was by simply spelling a word wrong, or failing to justify the answer fully to even failing to use up the whole page, Alex found himself failing more often than passing. Students knew about his failings and often ran away from him, not wanting to catch his 'stupidity', as it were some disease.

"Alex Shepherd!" the female teacher snapped. "If I catch you zoning off again, I will give you a week in detention!"

Alex sighed. He wasn't zoning off of course, but there was no point in arguing. Teachers would take every chance to pick on him. Sometimes it could be as simple as receiving a demerit for having gel in his hair. He heard the chuckles from surroundings students while he lowered his gaze to the exercise book on his desk. There was no point in speaking that would only create more trouble. The class seem to drag on for hours, until the class dismissed bell rang. Grateful, Alex stood up from his seat, grabbed his belongings then walked out.

**.**

It was recess now, the only time of the school day Alex could say he liked. It gave him the chance to get away from his mocking peers for a brief period. During recess, he always sat in the same place; behind the bushes. No one could see him and no one dared to bother to look. They figured he'd be hiding in the toilets or something. So he made his way to the bushes at the back of school oval, but a voice called out his name and stopped him for continuing further. "Not just did you grow up in a shithole, now you go exploring them as well," the male said, walking towards him, hands balled into fists.

Alex turned around to face him. Curtis Acker. He was probably the second most disliked person in the school grounds due to his sociopathic tendencies. Still, Curtis was far behind Alex in the most hated poll. "What are you implying, Curtis?" Alex replied, determined to keep a calm composure.

Curtis smirked. "The other students don't know it yet, but I do. I know your father and I know why he hates you so much. You're an embarrassment to him. You bring shame upon the family name." The smirk on his face never seemed to face. He took another step forward.

"You're making the wrong choice, Curtis," Alex replied. If Curtis wanted a fight, he'd be more than happy to give the guy one. He knew how to handle himself in a fight thanks to his father.

"You think I'm just going to let you walk away unharmed?" Curtis shook his head. "No, I'm going to give you what you deserve. I'm going to scar that pretty face of yours." He charged forward then threw his body at Alex, knocking him to the ground. He drew back a fist then brought it forward leaving a red mark on Alex's left cheek. Following this, Curtis brought his knee up and hit him in the jaw.

Adrenaline pulsing through his veins, Alex threw Curtis off himself then quickly picked himself up from the ground. Curtis growled and lunged forward again, but this time Alex was prepared. He evaded the attack then grabbed Curtis around the neck. Using his right leg, he swung it towards Curtis successfully managing to trip the guy over. Curtis groaned, muttering curses and tried to stand up. "You could never hope to win," he said, through clenched teeth, then aimed a well placed kick at Curtis' head. The male groaned again before closing his eyes. He lay motionless.

He watched Curtis' motionless body for awhile, until he heard the sounds of students walking in his direction. He didn't want to be seen standing near the unconscious figure, so he started running in the opposite direction towards home. Class could wait.

**.**

He didn't look back once; just kept his eyes focused on the path ahead. If he stopped he was certain a large group of students would chase after him and the consequences would be dire. Instead of heading towards the path leading to his house, he took a sharp turn right and jogged into the local graveyard. No one visited the graveyard. No one else found peace sitting with the dead.

He sat down before a gravestone, his eyes lingering on the R.I.P engraved in the headstone. He sat alone for what seemed like hours, when he heard footsteps come towards him. Jerking his head up, he spotted Elle walking towards him, concern on her features. She sat down next to him. "I heard what happened. Curtis is going to kill you, you know."

He snorted. "Doesn't everyone?"

"I know he's a jerk, but I don't think knocking him out was such a good idea. That guy is crazy, he will come after you."

"What did you expect me to do? Let him hit me? He insulted me; I wasn't going to let him walk away." As cruel as Curtis' words were, he spoke the truth. How he unearthed the truth was beyond him; not even Elle knew. He was aware she had feelings for him that were beyond friendship, but he couldn't reciprocate them. He didn't have the heart to tell her the truth.

Elle looked away briefly, then looked back. "I... just don't want you getting into more trouble. I care for you," she added, resting a hand on his shoulder.

He gave her a grim smile. "Thanks Elle."

Smiling softly, she replied, "We're friends, Alex. I'll always be here for you." She stood up from the ground, then turned to leave. "I'll see you soon, take care of yourself."

.

Just my attempt at Silent Hill highschool AU story. It will be slash. Reviews are much appreciated!


	2. Bleeding

**Disclaimer**

The rights to Silent Hill don't belong to me, unfortunately. That belongs to Konami.

**Title**

Darkness and Light

**Summary**

He's tired of being alone, tired of being the target of abuse. He's close to ending it for good, but the arrival of a new kid changes his perspective on life.

**Special Thanks**

Thanks to d-chan-67 for giving this story a chance and reviewing the opening chapter! Also, thanks to the people who alerted this.

**.**

**Chapter Two: Bleeding**

Hours had passed since Elle had left him, but Alex still remained in the graveyard enjoying his rare moments of peace. But as much as he wanted to stay here, he knew he had to return home otherwise his parents would call up the school demanding to know where he was. And that would result in a big search followed by a beating when they found him. That was something he wanted to avoid; the less bruises and cuts, the better.

With reluctance, he stood up from the seat and walked home. It didn't take him long; his house was just down the road, less than a hundred metres away. The skies were clear and the sun was shining, but Alex didn't feel any sense of joy at all. He walked up the road on the footpath, then walked to the front door. He didn't bother to knock – the door was unlocked. He pushed it open then entered.

He could hear his mother cooking in the kitchen and his father playing games with Josh. Both parents ignored him; not once did they look up to acknowledge him. Muttering a curse, Alex headed up towards his room. Most teenagers he knew had a room to themselves, but he had to share one with his younger brother which was quite embarrassing. He assumed his parents didn't think he was worthy enough to have his own room. Fortunately, only Elle knew of this. He couldn't bear to think what would happen if every other student knew.

The room looked as if a small bomb had gone off. Beds were unmade, toys lay scattered around on the floor but what caught his eye was the photo of himself and Josh lying on the bottom bunk. Alex walked over to it, picked it up and examined the photo. It was taken several years ago, back when Josh hadn't entered school. His parents weren't so rough on him – he suspected it was because they didn't want to expose Josh to such violence until he was older. He stared at the photo for a little longer, then cast it aside. The photo brought back old memories... they brought him back to a world where things weren't so bad, at least not as bad as they were now. Now he was hated. An outcast to his own family. A social reject at school. His life fell apart the moment his parents suspected he wasn't attracted to females.

He walked into the bathroom and locked the door. He moved to the bathroom sink then lowered himself to the ground to open the bottom drawer. Reaching a hand inside, he searched for a sharp blade of some sort. His fingers touched the surface of a razor blade. Clasping fingers around it, he pulled it out then stood back up again. Holding his arm over the bathroom sink, he placed the blade at his wrist and pushed down. With the razor blade placed against his wrist, he drew it across. The sharp blades cut a thin line causing an immediate flow of blood. He winced, then pulled the blade away, placing it back in the bottom drawer beneath the bathroom sink.

Many would view his activities as a sign of weakness, but to him, it was a sign of courage. How many people would willingly press a blade into their skin and make themselves bleed by choice? Sometimes he wished he dug the blade in deeper when he was younger, deep enough to rupture an artery and make him bleed to death. But he could never bring himself to making the extra effort. Perhaps he was pathetic after all. No wonder his parents didn't like him.

No one knew about his private activities in the bathroom, he always made sure he covered up his tracks well. His father would call him weak, his mother would shake her head at him, his brother would ask questions and Elle would look at him with concern and pity. The marks on his wrists were noticed by other students, but many believed his father had given them to him. If Elle asked, he simply told her it was an accident. It pained him to lie, but he couldn't tell her the truth. He didn't need more nasty comments being spread around the school about 'that Shepherd kid'.

Holding his arm to his stomach, he exited the bathroom and headed back to the bedroom. He would skip dinner, besides it wasn't as if his parents wanted him down at the dinner table anyway. When they were finished and busying themselves by watching television, he'd head downstairs and get something to eat if he felt hungry enough. But if he didn't hungry, he'd remain in his room. A night without food wouldn't kill him anyway. As he climbed up onto the top bunk, he wondered if his family even knew he was home. Closing his eyes, he drifted to sleep.

.

_The next day at school_

Walking into his morning class, he was surprised to find that his usual seat was occupied by another student. He had brown hair with matching brown eyes. He wore a stern expression; as if something had angered him. Alex strode towards him. "That's my seat," he said, staring down at the new student.

The teen looked up at him blankly, "You don't own it. I don't see your name on it anywhere." He jerked his head to the empty chair next to him, "Why don't you sit down, everyone's looking at you."

Suddenly aware of the stares he was receiving, Alex quickly sat down. His teacher rolled her eyes, then turned back to the board and carried on with the lesson while Alex briefly looked at his companion. "Who are you? I'm Alex Shepherd."

"Murphy Pendleton." Silence fell between them adding to awkwardness on Alex's behalf. He wasn't accustomed to sitting next to another student in class. This was beyond weird. At least before he didn't have to worry about people glancing over his shoulder, trying to get a peek at whatever he was doing. "What happened to your wrist?" Murphy asked, pointing to cuts on Alex's wrist.

"I was walking through the bush and got scratched by thorns," Alex replied, not even bothering to hide them.

"Hmph," came Murphy's response, "whatever you say, but they don't look like bush thorns to me."

Alex frowned, feeling a wave of defensive emotion build up inside. "You don't even know what bushes I'm talking about, so how can you say they don't look like bush thorn grazes?" he countered.

Murphy held up his hands and snorted, "No need to be so defensive, I was just making an observation."

"Alex Shepherd! Stop distracting other students from learning," the teacher snapped. "If I catch you talking again, that will be an instant detention after school." Several students snickered. Great, now the new kid knew he was a loser too. Could the day get any better?

.

Probably a little OOC there, but still getting the hang of the characters. I'll most likely change their personalities a little just so they fit in better with the story, I hope that doesn't bother you. Reviews much appreciated : ) More Murphy and Alex interaction in the next chapter, and Curtis is back for some revenge.


	3. Revenge

**Disclaimer**

The rights to Silent Hill don't belong to me, unfortunately. That belongs to Konami.

**Title**

Darkness and Light

**Summary**

He's tired of being alone, tired of being the target of abuse. He's close to ending it for good, but the arrival of a new kid changes his perspective on life.

**Special Thanks**

Thanks to D-Chan-67, Shepherd Alex and grandshadowseal for reviewing the previous chapter!

**.**

**Chapter Three: Revenge**

"There he is!"

Alex stopped. Curtis had recovered and judging by the tone in his voice, he was far from happy. Which was understandable, Alex had left him unconscious on the ground alone. But this time, Curtis had acquired the help of a few other students. Alex didn't recognize the other faces, but he knew they hated him – everyone did.

"You're not walking away this time!" Curtis yelled.

Sighing, Alex turned around to face his enemies. Two other kids, both blond, flanked Curtis, their hands curled into fists hanging at their sides. A one on one fight was easy enough, but taking on three at the same time was tough. He braced himself for a tough fight. "What do you want, Curtis?" Stupid question to ask, but it would give him some time to plot an escape.

"Payback."

He was of course referring to the fight they had earlier. "You started the fight," Alex pointed out.

Curtis glowered. "And I lost..." he glanced to his left, then right and nodded. "But not this time. As you can see, I've come prepared."

The other two guys were both pretty scrawny. Neither of them looked like they had been in fight before – not even in an arm wrestling match. Hell, they didn't look like they could even thumb wrestle. "You can walk away from this."

Curtis threw his back and laughed. Spit flew from his mouth and onto the floor. With the back of his hand, Curtis wiped his mouth then rubbed it on his clothes. "You got lucky last time."

It wasn't his luck. It was skill. Having a father in the military helped develop his skills. When he was the only child in the family, his father taught him basic combat. As soon as Josh was born, Alex was forced into teaching himself how to fight. The school yard proved to be a great training ground. "If that's what you want to believe."

Curtis was the first to attack. He charged. Alex evaded the attack, only to walk into one of Curtis' goons. Fortunately, his opponent didn't seem to know what to do allowing Alex to move out of the way unharmed. "You're meant to hit him!" Curtis bellowed.

That prompted the unnamed guys to attack. They both lunged at the same time. Any worries about facing a tough fight were quickly erased; this would be the easiest one yet at this rate. He almost laughed. Curtis attacked again, this time trying to aim a punch at his eyes. This was obviously not going to be a fair fight. What school yard one was?

Curtis stumbled, falling face first onto the ground. He ran his right hand across the gravel as if searching for a weapon to use. Alex wondered if the guy had been drinking since the last time they met. But the fight wasn't over; Curtis stood up, turned around and threw a handful of pebbles at Alex's face. "The fuck?" Alex muttered, shielding his eyes with his arms. Temporarily blinded, Alex was unable to evade Curtis' tackle.

He soon found himself lying on the ground, staring up at the face of Curtis. Hot alcohol-laden breath washed over him causing Alex to cringe. "No one is going to save you now, boy," he grinned, saliva dribbling down the side of his mouth. Immediately, Alex grabbed Curtis' nose and snapped it to the side. A yelp of pain burst from Curtis' mouth and he rolled off Alex, clutching his nose. Hands became covered in blood within seconds. "I'm going to kill you, you son-of-a-bitch!" he screamed, desperately reaching out, hands searching for something to grab.

Alex picked himself up from the ground. "You had the chance to walk away and you didn't. Just what are you trying to prove anyway?" he asked. Curtis' goons just stood still watching the scene with nervous eyes. He drew back a fist and prepared to punch Curtis again.

"Stop!"

Alex's head jerked to the left towards the source of the noise. A male with shaggy brown hair ran towards him. Murphy? What the hell was he doing here? Shouldn't he be with the other kids gossiping about Alex Shepherd? That's what all the new kids did. So, why was Murphy here now watching him? Before he could question the boy's presence, an implosion of pain erupted below.

Curtis' sniggers reached his ears, but he couldn't react. He lay there on the ground in a foetal position, while Curtis and his goons walked off laughing and exchanging high-fives. Great. Now Murphy got to really see how much of a loser the one and only Alex Shepherd was. Incapable of defending himself was the impression Murphy would make.

"Holy shit!"

Alex wanted nothing more than to be able to get away from Murphy but pain kept him grounded. A wave of nausea overcame him and he suddenly felt the urge to hurl. He understood how those loser kids on highschool shows felt. Pathetic. Embarrassed. Useless. He wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

He could feel Murphy's gaze upon him, watching him like a hawk. It made him feel uncomfortable. Steeling his jaw together, Alex forced himself up from the ground. "Here, let me help." Murphy assisted Alex allowing him to use him as support.

As soon as Alex was standing on his own two legs again, he jerked back from Murphy, glaring at him with burning hatred. "Any more of your _help _and I'll be dead." It was all Murphy's fault. If he had not shown up at that precise moment, he would not be in the position he was in now.

"I saw what happened. I thought if-"

"You thought you would join in the fight against me as well?" Alex replied sourly.

Murphy shook his head. "No, I thought I could help."

A bitter laugh escaped Alex's throat. "Help me? I doubt it. I can handle those guys... I would've won if it weren't for you showing up." He turned his back and began to walk away, not caring about the other male.

"Fine, have it your way then," Murphy retorted. "But I'll let you know, you're not the only one who can fight."

Whatever, thought Alex. Murphy wasn't worth his time. By the end of the week, the boy would most likely be friends with the cool kids in the school. It wouldn't be too long before Alex found himself in a fight against Murphy. How life sucked. It was as if there was some outside force trying to make his life as horrible as possible. Would anything good ever happen to him?

**.**

I'm a terrible updater, I know. I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. I'll try to update faster – aiming for the end of this month. Reviews are much appreciated : )

Next chapter should be longer – it'll be split. Murphy's pov and Alex's pov. There will be some Elle drama in the next chapter as well as other Silent Hill characters making their cameos. See you in the next chapter!


	4. Seeking Truths

**Disclaimer**

The rights to Silent Hill don't belong to me, unfortunately. That belongs to Konami.

**Title**

Darkness and Light

**Summary**

He's tired of being alone, tired of being the target of abuse. He's close to ending it for good, but the arrival of a new kid changes his perspective on life.

**Special Thanks**

, Raforta, Goddess Of Metal, LovelessRain0397, grandshadowseal and D-Chnan-67 for reviewing the previous chapter! I must admit, I'm quite surprised by the number of people of reading this. Thank you all so much for you invaluable support and I hope you continue to read.

.

**Chapter Four: Seeking Truths**

Getting through Alex's wall was a difficult job; it was obvious he was under a lot of stress, but the male would not crack. No matter how hard he tried to sound sincere, Alex Shepherd shut down his efforts. He almost wondered why he even bothered trying to get through to him. He clearly didn't want help from anyone.

"You're the new kid, right? Murphy Pendleton?" a blonde girl asked, pulling him out of his thoughts. He turned to face the speaker. Blue eyes looked intently at him. "I'm Elle Holloway. I'm a friend of Alex Shepherd's." She held out her hand, and he took it.

"You've heard all about me already then," he replied, placing his pen down on the table to further study the girl. She was rather attractive; if he were into women she'd be the girl he would want to date. Yes, Murphy Pendleton wasn't straight. At first, he simply assumed it was just a phase he was going through when he was in his pre teen years, but as he got older, he realized his attraction to women did not exist. "You said you were friends with Alex?" So someone had managed to crack that tough outer shell after all. Was Elle his girlfriend?

Elle nodded. "Childhood friends."

"Oh... so you're not... together?" He almost cursed himself inwardly for blurting out such a forward question. He had only just met the girl and already he was questioning her love life. Fortunately, the girl simply smiled.

"Oh no! We're just good friends, that's all," she said.

Murphy detected a hint of sadness in her tone. He suspected she wanted to be more than 'just friends' with the guy, but he just wasn't interested. "Oh," was all he said. Stupid response, Murphy, he scolded himself. If he wanted to get closer to Alex, he needed to develop a good friendship with his friends. So far he wasn't doing that well. At least, he didn't think he was. "So... what's he like? I tried talking to him before but he doesn't seem to like me very much."

Her smile faded. "He's a good guy, but not very trusting towards other people. Don't take it too personally – it's not your fault," she said quickly.

"It wouldn't be too forward of me to ask why, would it?" Murphy asked, giving Elle a sideways look. Elle arched her brows. Murphy cleared his throat, glancing down at his hands. "Sorry, I was just curious that's all. He doesn't seem to be all that popular around here and I was wondering why."

Elle shook her head. "No... it's not your fault. It's just... he doesn't want people feeling sorry for him. He's been through a lot. The students around here are always trying to give him a hard time."

Murphy knew that feeling all too well. At his previous school, he was bullied for being an orphan. It left him feeling so depressed he resorted to committing low level crimes to make him feel alive, even if was just a temporary feeling. Those days were long gone now. "I know how that feels."

Awkward silence. Elle placed her hands together, curling her fingers over one another, looking away from Murphy's face. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Murphy." She stood up and left him at the bench without uttering another word. Murphy watched her leave, feeling slightly confused over her sudden exit. Had he somehow managed to offend her? "Women," he murmured.

.

There was nothing more than Alex wanted right now than to beat the living daylights out of Curtis and his asshole friends. He also wanted to hurt Murphy for simply 'getting in the way'. Just what did that creep think he was doing anyway? Did he believe he was being a hero for trying to get involved? There was no way he was going to home looking like this. Not that his parents would care, in fact, they'd probably be happy. It was his younger brother he was concerned about.

One time Alex came home with a bloodied nose and a black eye. His parents simply ignored him. But Josh actually cried for him. His younger brother went out of his way to help Alex's condition improve much to the displeasure of his father. "I need to find a way to get that Murphy kid out of my life," he said aloud.

Murphy seemed pretty intent on trying to befriend him, and Alex planned to show the guy that was not a good idea. Besides, who wanted to be friends with a complete and total loser anyway? He was surprised Elle still wanted to stand by his side after all these long years. Although he was grateful for her support, he wished she would stop trying to get too involved in his life. That would only bring her pain and grief.

"Alex?"

Elle. He knew that voice anywhere. He glanced up. Her eyebrows were creased with worry. "What's the matter, Elle?"

"I was just wondering... if... if you'd like to hang out sometime?"

They had been friends for a very long time, yet Alex had never seen Elle struggle like this before. She couldn't even look at him directly in the eyes. "We always hang out, Elle," he replied flatly, confused by her sudden change in behaviour. "Well, whenever we can that is."

Now she looked at him. "This is different. I feel this is the right time to ask," she blurted. "Murphy gave me the courage."

Wait, what? "Murphy? The new kid?" Great. Now Murphy was talking to Elle. If they became good friends, he'd never manage to get Murphy off his case.

"I found him sitting alone, so I thought I'd talk to him..." she replied softly, giving Alex a confused look. "Don't you want me talking to him?"

No. He didn't. "You can't trust Murphy."

She snorted. "Why not? I gave you a chance."

Different situation, he thought. "I don't want to see you getting hurt. You're the only friend I have, Elle."

Her expression softened. "I'm more worried about you." There it was again. That sympathetic look.

"What did you have in mind?" There really wasn't that much to do in Shepherd's Glen other than check out the local cemetery and the lake. Several shops were present, but they weren't major ones. Mostly small corner stores selling the basic groceries.

"We could have a picnic down at the lake!" she exclaimed. "I know, it's not the greatest idea or anything, but at least you would get away from your home for awhile. You could bring your brother down too. I'll ask your dad. Better if I do."

All Alex could do was nod. Getting away for a few short hours would make him feel slightly better... for awhile anyway. Away from school. Away from home. A sound plan. "Alright. Saturday, right?"

Elle nodded. "Yeah. I'll drop by your place after school on Friday to ask your parents. I'm sure they'll say yes to me." Of course they would. They liked Elle. "I'll see you around, Alex."

.

This one was more of a filler chapter, sorry for the uneventfulness. It was necessary though to set up future plots. In the next chapter, Murphy decides to follow Alex home to learn more about his mystery past. Reviews are much appreciated : )


End file.
